Goodnight and Go
by TNT-DynaMITE
Summary: Show a little faith, there's magic in the night. Afterall, it only takes one moment, one sign, to change everything. An alternate ending to Season Three of One Tree Hill. Nathan/Haley. One Shot.


Hello Lovelies,

First, I would like to apologize for the delay in an update. You see, I started this writing venture in the middle of my sophomore year of college, which turned out to be detrimental. The reason I haven't updated **Life in Technicolor **was because I was working on this one shot, but the work on this little bit of fun kept on getting pushed back and back and back because of an overload of papers and assignments followed by finals, followed by my pursuit for a job. But now, I am home, and I have a job, and I have no more distractions so I'll be updating on a regular basis, I promise.

Right, so here's a detour from my story, and here's a one shot that popped into my head one day while I was listening to my iTunes. This story is a songfic, you could say. It comes out of the song _The Truth About Heaven_ by Armor for Sleep, so credit to that band and that song for this story. This is a **Nathan/Haley** one shot, so please enjoy!

Read and review, please please please please please!

PS: **Life in Technicolor** will be updated VERY SOON.

**Goodnight and Go**

It had been one month, one dreadfully long month since Nathan Scott's wedding day. One month since he had put a ring on Haley James' finger, for the second time. One month since he had renewed his vows with the love of his life. One month since he had said 'I do,' again. One month since he had shared his first dance with his wife. One month since his car had collided with the limo which held Rachel and his Uncle Cooper. One month since he looked at his wife and jumped into the river hoping to save the lives of the people trapped underwater. One month since he had died.

Nathan looked up at the sky, seeing star after star twinkling at him, but all Nathan could do was sigh loudly. He had been dead for a month and he hated it. He hated it more than not being able to play basketball. He hated it more than Dan Scott. He hated it more than Chris Keller. He hated it more than anything. For the past month he had been in and out of what he suspected to be heaven. It wasn't all that grand, mainly because it was missing everything he wanted. Heaven had no Haley, heaven had no family, and heaven had no friends. Heaven was just a place, so Nathan Royal Scott found himself spending a lot of time roaming around Tree Hill. He decided he would label himself a ghost, even though he technically wasn't one, but it was easier than getting into the mechanics of it all.

_Walk past my grave in the dark tonight_

Nathan found himself where he usually ended up every night he would decide to visit Tree Hill, at his grave. He would always go there first to ensure that he was indeed dead. He still had hopes that one day his grave wouldn't be there and it would all end up being a dream. He had plotted out many scenarios in his head involving comas that he would wake up from or miraculous recoveries in the hospital, but each time he'd set eyes on his gravestone all his hopes would be dashed. He stood there staring at the hulk of stone which jutted out of the ground. His name was carved into the stone along with the years of his life and a short and sweet description of him. He turned his head a little seeing Keith Scott's gravestone sitting on the right of his. Nathan found himself sighing again, as he desperately wanted to leave the graveyard, but something stopped him.

_Saw the stone and the note you left for me_

Out of the corner of his eye, the raven haired Scott saw a fresh set of flowers sitting by his grave. He walked closer and bent down so he could see exactly what it was that had caught his attention. Nathan felt himself smiling as he picked up the flowers in his hand.

"Haley." He said softly, knowing it was her that had brought them over. They were the purple flowers, the ones that had so uniquely become something that symbolized the love they had for each other, something that was truly theirs. Something that Brooke would call a 'Naley' thing. Nathan laughed softly at the thought of Brooke Davis and her random ways. As Nathan took another look at the flowers he saw that there was a note attached to them. Nathan quickly put the bouquet of flowers down and opened up the note that was addressed to him. He knew it was from Haley, her handwriting easy to recognize. He was so familiar with it from all the tutoring sessions he had with her way back when. His actions stopped for a moment as he thought back to how much he would love to go back to those days. All he wanted in that moment was to be sitting across from her and staring as her hair fell so softly as she tried to explain the importance of Bismarck's strategy in Germany to him, but all of that was long gone. He opened the letter and started reading softly to himself, almost hearing Haley's voice reading the letter.

_Nathan,_

_God, I feel so silly doing this, writing you a letter which you'll never get, but Luke told me that writing might help, help me heal. Ha, heal. It's been one month since the accident, and I honestly can't even picture myself healing or getting over this or even living without you. Nathan, I miss you so much. It was supposed to the best day of our life. It was supposed to be the day when we finally got our happily ever after. What am I supposed to do without you? Why'd you have to leave? Why? Why?_

_To answer your question: I just had to leave, I just had to leave_

Nathan tried to hold back his own tears as he finished reading the unfinished letter. Haley's handwriting was shaky and Nathan noticed the tear stains right away. He folded the note in his hand and put it into his pocket as he got up and turned his back to his grave and to the reality of his life not being a life anymore. He looked up at the dark night's sky again and yelled as loud as he could. His fists were clenched, his face burning up from the anger that was growing inside him. Why did he have to leave? He didn't, that was the answer to that, but fate had other plans, and Nathan Scott wanted a talk with fate. Everything was ruined. Everything. He had promised Haley a big wedding in front of their friends and family. He had promised her always and forever, and now all of his promises were broken. Everything was broken. As soon as Nathan Scott had his life in order, as soon as everything was in its right place, it was all gone. Gone. He was gone.

_But that's not why I'm here_

Every time Nathan found himself wandering the streets of Tree Hill he promised himself that he wouldn't check up on her. He told himself over and over again that he wouldn't see her, but each time he had to. There was a magnetic pull and Nathan always ended up where Haley was. His instincts always knew where to find her. And tonight they had not failed him.

Nathan stood at the foot of Lucas Scott's bed staring down at the inhabitants of the bed. His brother lay there facing inward his back to the walls of his room, and his front facing the entrance to the room. Nathan could tell from Lucas' body that his older brother was tired.

Sleep had not come easy to the blonde haired Scott boy. Sleep had not come at all over the last month of his life. And tonight was one of the exceptional nights where his body wouldn't allow him to stay up at all. He needed some rest, just a little chance to drift off into a world where everything was normal where his best friend wasn't a wreck and where his brother still existed. Lucas had been the one to count on and depend on in the last month. Whenever Haley needed him, Lucas was by her side. The only way they knew to handle the tragedy of Nathan's death was side by side, much like they handled most issues in life. And this night was no different.

Nathan's attention turned to the other body occupying Lucas' small bed. Her body looked much smaller than he last remembered. She was curled up into Lucas' body as they were both facing each other. Her blonde hair was covering the side of her face, hiding the sadness and misery that had become a part of Haley James' life for the past month. Nathan felt a pang of jealously at the closeness of his brother and his wife, but it was brief as he understood that this was something they both needed to get by day by day. As Nathan stood there watching the two best friends sleep he could almost laugh at the situation. A look of amusement did appear on his face as he continued to stare. Under any other circumstance he would have his brother in a headlock for sleeping in the same bed as his wife. Deep down inside, Nathan knew that Lucas and Haley had something completely platonic, but that wouldn't stop Nathan from having a chance at beating up his brother. But these circumstances didn't call for such roughness; rather it caused Nathan to become quite somber. It was supposed to be him who was helping Haley and making sure she was alright, but it wasn't. Another wave of anger rushed over Nathan as he thought about everything he wasn't able to do because he was dead.

But his anger was immediately washed away when he saw Haley roll over, away from Lucas. Her back was now facing Lucas' front, and she had found herself on the farthest edge of the bed before falling off.

"That's my girl," Nathan whispered softly as he moved from the foot of the bed. In his mind Nathan wanted to think Haley had heard his thoughts and had moved away from his brother to appease him. He slowly made his way over to his wife and knelt before her. It was quite a sight: Six foot two, Nathan Scott was kneeling down on the floor, on his knees, so he was level with his wife's sleeping body.

_I came down here to tell you, it rains in heaven all day long_

Nathan stood as still as possible, listening to Haley's breathing and just watching her sleep. Under a mess of hair, she seemed so calm and almost peaceful. All Nathan could do was stare for a moment, just taking in her whole body. She was dressed in pajama bottoms and one of his shirts. Every night Nathan had come down to Tree Hill, Haley would always be wearing or hugging an item of his clothing. The moonlight was coming through the windows in Lucas' room, lighting up Haley's body for Nathan. He moved his hand from his side slowly, and brought it to Haley's face. It stood in mid air for a bit, as Nathan was too afraid to touch her, too afraid to destroy the peace. He finally got up the courage to touch her, as he brushed the hair out of her face and placed it behind her ear.

"Hi, baby."

_I wanna find you so bad and let you know I'm miserable up here without you_

Nathan Scott stood silent for awhile, just staring at his wife. His face turned somber as he examined her some more. Haley looked fragile and tired. Through the moonlight that was framing her face, Nathan could see the tear stains on Haley's face. Although she was sleeping, Nathan could tell that the light and happiness from her face had long gone. Curled up in a small little ball, she looked like a child in front of him. All he wanted to do was scoop her into his arms and hold on, but it was impossible.

"I'm so sorry, Hales," he whispered softly to her sleeping body. "You know I never wanted to leave you, never wanted to leave you in this state."

Every night Nathan would come down and visit his Haley he would end up having a conversation with her, it was always one sided, but it always reassured him and made him feel better when he got a chance to talk to her, just to tell her what's on his mind. For a fleeting moment it felt like nothing had changed, that Nathan had just come home from a hard basketball practice or from school and he was speaking to his wife about his day. And Nathan Scott lived for those fleeting moments where he could truly believe that he was there, alive, and with the one person he was supposed to be with.

"I miss you, Haley James. God, I miss you so much. It's no fun up there. Hales, it's always raining in heaven and you know I only love the rain when you're around. I'm so miserable without you. It doesn't feel right and it doesn't sit well in my stomach. Baby, I want you to know that I would give up anything and I would do anything to come back for you. I read your letter today, and I know you're mad. Please don't be angry with me. You have to understand, Hales, you have to know that I didn't want this. I never wanted this. It was supposed to be the beginning of the rest of our lives and now…" Nathan couldn't bring himself to continue. He hated admitting it to himself out loud. He hated repeating the fact that he was dead, that he was gone.

"The flowers are beautiful. Did you ever figure out the name of them? I'm sure you must have. I'm so happy you have Luke and all our friends and family helping you through this. Baby, you have to promise me something though, okay? Promise me that you'll move on from this. Promise me that you'll live your life to the fullest. Promise me you won't stop being the Haley James I fell in love with. Hales, the only way I'll be able to go on up there will be if I know you're okay down here. I need you to be okay. You need to be okay." Nathan pleaded softly to Haley's sleeping figure.

"I miss this," Nathan said as he stroked Haley's face, "I miss watching you sleep. God, I could watch you sleep forever. Do you remember Hales? Remember the morning after we got married how I just watched you sleep? I wish I could go back to that just for awhile, live in that moment again." Nathan said as he smiled a little at the memory. He had woken up thinking he was crazy having gotten married at the age of sixteen, but as he looked at his wife's sleeping body next to him that morning, all his thoughts of doubt had disappeared immediately and he knew right away that marrying Haley James was the only right thing in the world.

"Hales, you need to take care of yourself okay? I know you haven't been eating properly for the last few weeks, but you need to take care of yourself. If you don't want to do it for yourself, please just do it for me? Please? And I know you're worried about me. You silly girl, even when I'm….I'm…dead….even when I'm dead you're worrying about me. Only you Haley, only you. I'll be fine, just as long as you're okay down here. God, I love you Haley James Scott. I love you so much. Everything I said on our wedding day, on both of our wedding days, will always ring true. Always and forever Haley, always and forever."

With that Nathan gave Haley a sweet kiss on the forehead, lingering there for a moment, wanting to have this moment with her for as long as possible, not knowing the next time he would see her. Even if there would be a next time. He hadn't quite figured out the intricacies of heaven just yet, so he didn't know how many more times he would be able to come down to the real world. He took in Haley's scent and slowly got up from his position on the ground. Nathan stood there for a moment just watching her breath before he turned around, walking towards the door to leave Lucas' room and go outside.

_Found my way back in the dark tonight_

"Nathan?"

Nathan Scott stopped his movements completely, his eyes closed and his muscles tense. He held his breath as he heard the distinct sound of someone moving behind him. For a second Nathan thought he had only imagined his name being called, but that voice and the way it said his name, it was distinctly Haley. Nathan turned around slowly, not knowing what was going to happen next, completely dazed.

Haley James Scott was moving into a sitting position on the bed, wiping the sleep away from her eyes and staring right in Nathan's direction. She blinked once or twice adjusting her eyes to the darkness that had filled the room save for the moonlight that was peaking in. And through all of this Nathan stood completely still and stared at Haley and all her movements as she stared right back. Nathan continued to hold his breath not knowing whether Haley suddenly gained the ability to see him, not knowing what in the world was going on. His confusion only allowing him to stand there in one spot completely still.

Haley sighed, a sound of complete defeat, as if she had sent all her hopes high into the sky and they had just crashed violently to the ground. "It was only a dream," she finally let out putting her head in her hands and sitting on the bed motionless.

_Couldn't wake up not right next to you_

Nathan let out of the breath he was holding; of course, it was only a dream. Nathan could almost laugh at himself for thinking such silly thoughts. She hadn't seen him, she definitely didn't know he was there. His tense figure relaxed dramatically, but the same defeated look that was currently covering Haley's face was being mirrored by Nathan's. He couldn't help but have hoped that Haley had indeed seen him, and he would have just one chance to talk to her and be with her one last time, but the world was a cruel one, and it would never happen.

Nathan stood in front of Haley, not knowing what to do. His brain had stopped working, and his legs weren't allowing him to move. The only part of his body that seemed to be working perfectly was his heart, which was beating quite fast, as he watched his wife stretch and make her way out of bed. He watched, as she yawned and grabbed a hair tie off the dresser and pulled her hair up into a pony tail. As she was doing this both Nathan and Haley's eyes landed on one thing: Haley's wedding ring.

Husband took a small step closer to wife, as they both stared at the thing that signified their union. Nathan saw a small smile emerge out of Haley's features, as she examined her hand and looked at the ring. He couldn't help but smile himself, as he looked down at his left hand and saw his wedding ring shimmering in the dark as well.

Haley laughed softly, "Oh Nathan Scott, you still make me smile even when you're…….gone."

_I'd trade in forever to just hear you say the sound of my name_

Nathan's heart almost stopped hearing his wife say his name just one more time. He closed his eyes soaking in the moment. He wanted to be in that place forever, in that instant where he heard the joy in his soul mate's voice, where everything seemed just right. He was jolted out of his serenity suddenly, though, when he heard the sound of someone shuffling around the room rather quickly. Nathan opened his eyes quickly, slightly peeved at the disturbance. His annoyance immediately transformed into confusion as he became bewildered at what his wife was doing.

"Hales?" he questioned as if she could answer.

"I'm sorry Luke. I know I promised I'd actually sleep tonight, but I keep on dreaming about Nathan, so I'm going to take a walk," Haley said to a sleeping Lucas as she put on a pair of shoes and found a hoodie to wear. She had answered Nathan's unasked question without even knowing it. "Plus, your room is giving me the creeps. I have the strangest feeling I'm being watched. And now I'm going crazy because I'm talking to absolutely no one because you're fast asleep and can't hear a word I'm saying! Ugh, pull it together Haley James Scott!" Haley said to herself.

Nathan laughed out loud at Haley's antics. Even if he was dead, Haley's rambling still hadn't changed, and the fact that she referred to herself as a Scott, made his laughter even more joyful. Nathan's laughter and happiness followed Haley out of Lucas' room as they both ventured out into Tree Hill in the depth of darkness, but unknowingly using each other as light.

_But that's not why I'm here_

The water was eerily still as a boy and a girl looked down at it. A soft breeze provided the slightest bit of noise to an otherwise serene night. Nathan Scott stood next to his wife, as silent tears rolled down her face, resisting the urge to wipe them away. He had followed Haley all the way to the bridge, where Nathan had died, to Molina Bridge. So there they were, in the very place that changed the rest of their lives. For Nathan, it was the place where his life had ended, and for Haley it was the place where her life had stopped. This was the first time since the accident that either of them had visited this place, but for some reason this night had attracted them both to come to this place filled with horrific memories. Haley stared at the water, simply staring as the tears continued to flow like fire from her eyes, and Nathan just stared at her.

"I don't know why I'm here," Haley said softly, taking a deep breath and looking up at the night sky. "I guess, I'm looking for some sort of a sign," she said dejectedly, as she returned to looking at the water beneath her. "For the last month, I've been stuck in this fog, where I just go through the motions of the day. I'm not living, I'm just surviving, barely surviving, and I can't do this. I can't do this forever."

Nathan watched as Haley began losing control and sobbing uncontrollably. He watched as she slid down and sat on the road, her back to the water now, looking up at the sky, trying to find some sort of an answer. He couldn't do anything. He couldn't comfort her and he couldn't scoop her into his arms and make it all better. He felt so helpless, as he slid down beside her and just sat next to her, willing her to feel better.

"Nathan," she said very quietly as she looked up to the sky, "I know you don't want me to live like this. I know in my heart of hearts that you don't want this for me and that you want me to be happy, but baby, I don't know how. Nathan, I need your help. I need you. I…just…I….can't do this….on my own."

_I came down here to tell you it rains in heaven all day long_

Nathan's heart was breaking as he saw his wife falling apart in front of his eyes. Tears were spilling out of his eyes slowly as he spoke to her, "I know, Hales, I know. I can't do this without you either. I wish there was something I could do to help you, but I don't know Hales. I just don't. You need to be strong. You're a Scott now afterall, and we can get through anything. Look at Luke, look at everything he's survived. Please Haley you need to try for me. For us. You have to get past this and move on from this and be the amazing person I know you are." Nathan hoped as hard as he could that somehow Haley had heard what he was saying, but there was no response, nothing that showed that she had received his message.

"I just need a sign or something that shows me you're here. Something, anything. Please Nathan, it's all I need," Haley pleaded to the stars, "Just give me something!"

Nathan stood up angrily, "You make me a ghost, but you don't give any, I dunno, magical powers or something! Even Casper got something! Help me out here!" He yelled to the dark, black sky. And as he put his hands down angrily to his sides, he felt something in his pocket. Nathan quickly, dug into his pant pockets looking for the thing that he had felt. His eyes grew wide as his hand finally grabbed a hold of the item he was so desperately looking for. He delicately took his hand out of his pocket, and looked down at his closed fist holding the one thing that both he and Haley needed. Nathan opened his fist to reveal the bracelet he had given Haley during their first ever tutoring session.

_I wanna find you so bad and let you know I'm miserable up here without you_

Nathan stared at it wondrously, not knowing it had been in his pocket all along. He looked at the bracelet, the events of the car ride right before the accident replaying in his head. He remembered Haley putting the bracelet on his hand while they were driving. The goofy little bracelet had seen them through a lot, and now it was going to help them once again. Nathan ran from the bridge down to the shore where the water met with land. He took the bracelet from his hand and placed it on the shore and kneeled beside it. All Haley needed to do was see the bracelet.

"Haley! Haley! God damnit, Haley! Look over here! Please!" Nathan yelled repeatedly as loud as he could hoping Haley would just towards him. Haley had stood up again and was staring at the water once more, crying silently. "Come on baby! Just turn your head, just a little!" Nathan pleaded over and over again. "HALEY JAMES SCOTT, IF YOU LOVE ME YOU WILL TURN AROUND AND LOOK IN MY DIRECTION THIS INSTANT!" Nathan said with all the strength he had within him, and that was all it took because as soon as Nathan finished his demand, Haley turned her head in his direction.

"Is that?" Haley said faintly, as she squinted her eyes trying to get a closer look at the object that had caught her eye. Suddenly, her eyes grew wider as she seemed to recognize what the object on the ground was, "It can't be!" Haley ran as fast as she could down from the bridge to the shore. Her breath caught in her throat as she knelt down and fingered the bracelet that had so many memories attached to it. A bright smile shined on Haley's face as she picked up the bracelet and held it in her hand. And as her fist closed tightly, holding the bracelet, the heavens seemed to open up and the rain started to pour down hard and fast.

Haley and Nathan both looked up at the sky laughing, just laughing. Afterall, the rain was a Nathan and Haley thing. For the first time in a month, Nathan was happy it was raining, because this was the first time in a month that Nathan was able to experience this rain with the girl of his dreams. Haley's tears of joy melded with the rain that was pouring on her, and her eyes smiled up at the night's sky. This was the first time in a month that Haley truly found herself happy.

"Thank you," Haley James Scott said softly to the sky, and looked down at the bracelet and started to put it around her wrist. As it rolled down her fingers and her palm to her wrist, where it belonged, Haley could have sworn she heard Nathan beside her saying,

**"Don't say I never gave you anything."**


End file.
